Super Bowl LVI betting recap: The best, worst, and everything in between

There are a lot of post-Super Bowl think pieces, features, and breakdowns the day after the big game. They're all great, I'm sure. However, in this space, the only thing that matters is the money. The Bengals covered +4.5, the Rams cashed their moneyline, and the under got home as we'd hoped. But from a betting perspective, there was more to Super Bowl LVI than that.

Best bets

Cooper Kupp MVP (+600)

The most valuable player in SoFi Stadium for Super Bowl LVI was Aaron Donald. He had two sacks on the scoresheet and the game-sealing play. However, this is an award voted on by human beings, and it was part of the handicap that Donald would have to go above and beyond in order to win MVP. We were rewarded in assuming that Kupp would get some extra credit for an amazing season.

If Donald's game-ending rush had been some combination of a sack/forced fumble/recovery, his stat line would've been more attractive to voters. Instead, Kupp's stats - along with the game-winning touchdown and a critical fourth-down carry - ended up being shinier.

Over 5.5 sacks (+105)

Sometimes the most obvious bets are that easy. When this matchup was made two weeks ago, the instant reaction was the Rams' front seven would get to Joe Burrow. The sack total was set high at 5.5, but it didn't matter. Once the Bengals' suspect offensive line wilted, the Rams cleared the total on their own with seven takedowns.

Worst bet

Anything to do with Cam Akers

The Rams' running game was surprisingly horrendous. Los Angeles tailbacks ran 19 times for 30 yards despite a seemingly advantageous matchup. We're singling out Akers because he was the featured runner in the prop market, but none of the Rams' three running backs had a hope against a Bengals defense that turned the narrative upside down like 50 Cent at halftime.

Bad beats

Odell Beckham Jr. overs, 2+ touchdowns

If you had anything other than Beckham's anytime touchdown, you can feel aggrieved by his unfortunate non-contact injury in the second quarter. At that moment, Beckham was the early MVP of the game with 52 yards and a score. Needing just 15 more yards and three more catches to clear his prop totals, his overs seemed inevitable. A second touchdown was very much in the cards - a bet that would've paid +650. Beckham's injury was painful for all, and a string of bad beats resulted.

Matthew Stafford under 5.5 rushing yards

The sneakiest bad beat of Super Bowl LVI goes to Stafford's rushing yards. Forget for a moment the limited likelihood of an immobile Stafford lumbering for seven yards in the first quarter - his only scramble of the game. Part of the handicap for this bet was the idea that, as the quarterback of the favored team, Stafford may have some kneeling opportunities at the end of the game. Sure enough, with the Bengals' late turnover on downs, the Rams lined up in victory formation.

Those of us with the under 5.5 needed one of two things:

1. The Bengals' failed fourth-down play ends with the clock stopped at 41 seconds, forcing two snaps from the Rams.
2. Cincinnati takes its final timeout, keeping hope alive for a bad Rams snap.

Unfortunately, as Burrow's final fling fell to the ground, the clock stopped at 39 seconds. Bengals coach Zac Taylor then eschewed a final timeout, meaning just one snap was necessary.

But there was one last hope: Stafford could've taken a big enough step back on his kneel for a rushing attempt of -2 yards. Sadly, he kept tight to the line, and his rush of -1 yard left his total at six.

Long shots

There wasn't anything outrageous from the long-shot betting market. Those who wildly backed Beckham might've cashed with him as the first touchdown scorer at around 10-1.

Akers was an unlikely receiver of the game's first reception at +1000. In retrospect, given that Sony Michel and Darrel Henderson each had a first catch this season, Akers - as the starting running back - should've been more on our radar.

Bet fails

Will the opening kickoff be a touchback?

The biggest buzz of any prop bet surrounded the opening kickoff. Our piece on the history of whether there would be a touchback on the opening kick helped the odds on "No" slowly fall from +200 to essentially a pick'em.

We may never know if Evan McPherson read about the rarity of an opening kickoff touchback and spitefully gave it a little extra, but the strong-legged rookie got enough of the ceremonial ball to get it into the end zone. With that, a good bet went wrong.

Team to make longest field goal

Speaking of kicking, from a market-value standpoint, the best bet made might've been the Bengals to kick the longest field goal. Clearly misplaced at +100 on the open, a big move saw McPherson close as high as -170 to make the longest field goal. However, both of his kicks came inside the 30-yard line. Matt Gay's one field goal was for a modest 41 yards, good enough to send more closing-line value into the trash like the bones of a dozen hot wings.

Matt Russell is a betting writer for theScore. If there's a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on Twitter @mrussauthentic.